Yuuri's Past Job(s)
by Iris Butterfly
Summary: In which figure skating is an expensive sport and Yuuri had worked at a host club (and maybe other jobs too) to fund for it.
1. Chapter 1

Note: This idea of Yuuri working at a host club (because there are so many in Japan, and the idea spawn from it) just snowballed into this.

* * *

Yuuri uncharacteristically let out a twitch as he stared at his best friend – soon-to-be-ex-friend? – who let out a sheepish yet apologetic smile and a helpless shrug. He heaved an exasperated sigh and rubbed his temple to ease his oncoming headache.

He was planning to take this secret of his dark past to the grave. Really, no one was supposed to know. Well, no one aside from Phichit, because his best friend, the social media king, knows _everything_ about him. He still doesn't know how Phichit managed to find out about this when he didn't use his real name when he was working _there._ He had a common indistinguishable name, and yet, Phichit managed to find it. How is that possible?

"…Yuuri, you worked at a host club before?" Victor asked with his eyes widened and his mouth gaped in shock.

"Um… w-well… yes?"

Victor still had that surprised expression as he repeated, " _A host club?"_

"Yuuri, I didn't know you were into that kind of environment." Chris had that all-knowing smirk that made Yuuri want to hide under his blankets and never come out ever.

Instead, he shoved down all his anxieties – as much as he could, which was not much if he was being truthful – and retorted with a, "W-well, you know how expensive figure skating is. I didn't have sponsors then, and I had to pay for it somehow if I wanted to continue."

"Really, Katsudon as a host? Who would request him anyway?" Yuri raised an incredulous brow and scoffed at the notion.

Phichit cleared his throat as if he was preparing to enlighten a group of uncultured people. He peered over to Yuuri, who just sighed, leaned back against the lockers, and looked as if he had given up altogether. Well, it wasn't Phichit's fault that the world wasn't prepared for this, really.

"According to the internet and his clients who turned out to be his sponsors now, Yuuri is their most requested host. His face was on the top five list outside the club every week for months." The Thai skater explained helpfully with a grin. "I even have pictures that. I must say, Yuuri, you look amazing."

"How did you even come across that?" Yuuri asked with an eyebrow raised. He then let out another sigh and groaned, "I can't believe you managed to stalk the internet for it."

"Yuuri, Yuuri, Yuuri." Phichit tsked disapprovingly with a shake of his head, looking like a parent scolding his child for a misdeed. "How could think you can hide something this big from your best friend? Am I not your best friend? Are you denouncing me as your best friend? You are, aren't you? How can you do this to me, Yuuri? My heart can't handle the betrayal!"

Yuuri gave an unimpressed look at his overly dramatic friend, and said, "You're overacting," in a deadpanned tone.

"So, do you give… _favors_ … to your clients?" Victor asked with a gulp.

"Of course not. We just sit and talk over a drink." Yuuri answered as if it was obvious. He then smirked at their gob smacked looks when he destroyed the notions they had about host clubs, and decided to add, "How else did you think I managed to drown 16 flutes of champagne, do dance-offs, and pole-dance?"

He wasn't going to mention that he blacked out during that infamous Sochi banquet, but everyone already knew that one way or another. Really, who needs details?

"So, what's your host name, Yuuri?" Chris purred with a smirk, looking amused by the whole matter.

The said person retaliated with a sultry smirk of his own, ignoring Victor's startled gasp in the background, and rebutted, "Wouldn't you like to know?"

"He's known as Yuki. It's so unimaginative, I know." Phichit answered as he scrolled through his phone until his fingers stopped at something. "I have pictures if you want to see."

"NO PHICHIT! Don't show that!"

Phichit decided that sharing is caring and revealed over 500 pictures he somehow had of Yuuri as Yuki. "Yuuri, everyone must see how much Eros you have."

Chris let out a low whistle as he eyed at various pictures of Yuuri donned a formal attire with his hair stylishly unruly and heated eyes gazing at the camera. He blinked and looked at the pictures more closely, and uttered a, "Whoa," when he noted earrings in the pictures.

"Oi, old man, is that why you decided to give Katsudon the Eros routine?" Yuri raised an eyebrow towards Victor and tried to sound uninterested.

"I swear, I didn't know anything about this, Yura." Victor shook his head as his eyes stayed glued to the small screen that is Phichit's cellphone, and looked as if he wanted to save those pictures for his own collection. "Yuuri, why would you hide this from me?"

Yuuri let out a twitch at the pout directed at him and at the group crowding around Phichit's cellphone. He doesn't have an answer to that question without opening another assortment of problems that he doesn't want to handle now. Instead, he decided to answer with another question, "Shouldn't we be focused on practice instead of… this?"

"Oh please, we all know this is more important than our Grand Prix Final." Phichit replied flippantly as he stood next to Chris to look at the pictures again. "Oh, have you seen the ones where they had a crossdressing day?"

Yuuri just wanted to dig a hole and never come out again when his best friend mentioned _another_ chapter of his dark past. The club he worked at had themes on certain days of the month, and one of those was crossdressing. It was popular with their clients, unsurprisingly. The club also sold pictures of the hosts during that time, which sold out within the first hour.

And _of course_ , Phichit would have pictures of those. Why wouldn't he?

Instead, Yuuri decided it was a perfect time to take a page from Yuri's book, and shouted, "I don't know you guys anymore!" and stalked out of the locker room.


	2. Chapter 2

Note: I wasn't going to continue this, but this idea kept running circles in my head so I had to write it down.

* * *

Yuuri wanted to delete that episode in the locker room with other skaters altogether. Phichit shouldn't have said anything about his past work in the host club at all. In fact, his best friend (whom he has half the mind to denounce that title) shouldn't have shown the pictures either. Really, it wasn't a big deal. He needed the money, and the job offered excellent pay and connections – it was a solution where everyone benefited.

Sure, it doesn't match his image (or so Phichit constantly reminds him every time they reminisced this story, which they don't need to – but what image?) but who cared about details? He sure doesn't.

So, why does he feel like an angry kitten that is Yuri and wants to scream every time Victor gives him that lookfor the past two weeks?

That puppy-dog look (one he was positive Victor learned from Makkachin), and non-subtle glances at various dresses he caught the older man looking at from one of Mila's fashion magazines. Oh, he knows what Victor wanted; but he wasn't going to comply if his pride had anything to say.

He ran away from his coworkers 29 times the first time they tried to do a cross-dressing event, and they caught him 29 times. Suffice to say, his manly pride took a huge blow… more so, when they took pictures and posted it outside the club for everyone to see. He thought that was the end of that saga (with corsets, frilly laces, hair extensions, makeup, and killer high heels), but no… Phichit had evidences of that dark past and shown it to everyone.

Yuuri took a long sip of his champagne while he eyed boringly at other skaters and coaches conversing with sponsors. The banquet, no matter how many he attended, was still boring… although he had a feeling that Chris brought in that portal dancing pole mockingly standing in the middle of the room. It was a hint at something which he wasn't going to pay attention to. He already made a fool of himself at Sochi, and he wasn't going to repeat it again this year, thank you very much.

"Yuuri~~"

"Is there something you need, Phichit?" Yuuri responded in a deadpanned tone.

He was positive his best friend conspired with Victor – both are traitors, if he had anything to say. Then again, it wouldn't surprise him if Chris was in this scheme to get him to cross-dress either. Why else would that pole be at the banquet otherwise? Or that all-knowing smirking expression that the Swiss skater gave him every so often?

Phichit gasped dramatically as if his words wounded him. "Yuuri, can't I greet my best friend without needing anything? I didn't raise you to be that way."

"You didn't raise me at all, Phichit. Don't be silly." Yuuri interjected with an unamused look, and took another sip of champagne to ignore the Thai skater's shocked expression at his sassiness.

"—Anyway, I wanted to know if you –"

"Whatever it is, the answer is no."

"But I didn't say anything yet."

"The answer is still no." Yuuri gave him a knowing look. "I know you, Victor, and Chris have been conspiring to get me to cross-dress. You weren't exactly subtle in your social media posts, and Victor had been looking through Mila's fashion magazines when he thinks I wasn't looking."

Phichit gave a nervous laugh at the response as he scratched the back of his neck, and tried to persuade his friend, "But Yuuri, you'd look amazing in them."

"It's still a no."

If his pride as a man had anything to say, he wasn't going to cross-dress just because his fiancé and friends wanted to see how he would like. Oh, he knew he'll never live it down if he did – Phichit would undoubtedly post it on social media (he was thankful for small mercies that Phichit didn't post his past cross-dressing pictures) and it would be on internet for forever. He could feel the embarrassment just thinking about it.

Once was more than enough, thank you very much.

Yuuri, somehow, managed to find himself alone once again after Phichit had to talk to a sponsor. He still hasn't moved from the buffet table – not that he wanted to since there were various array of cakes and finger sandwiches. He knew he would gain weight from eating these, but he couldn't find it in himself to care. They were that good, and he was a stress eater. And boy, was he stressed.

"Katsuki Yuuri."

He quickly plopped another finger sandwich in his mouth before he looked over to the owner to the voice. It was an older man with graying black hair, dressed in an expensive suit (a Brunello Cucinelli brand, his mind supplied) and polished dress shoes from same brand as the suit. The only reason he knew luxury brands was due to his past occupation (can he call it that?) as a host.

Yuuri's eyes widened in recognition, and he quickly gave a bow as he uttered, "Ah, Suzuki-san. How is Yukina-san doing? Also, I hope you are having a good time."

"My wife is doing well, thanks for asking. I saw your performance, and I must say, I was pleasantly surprised."

He blinked at the comment while he pondered on the words 'pleasantly surprised'. Was that in a good way? Bad way? Did he do that badly that Suzuki-san was phrasing it politely?

"Ah, thank you."

"You were so graceful and fluid out there. I know you mentioned you were a figure skater when we met at Club Orchid, but I didn't think you were competing internationally." Suzuki-san continued with a hearty laugh. "Besides, you look so different that I never would've guessed it was you if I didn't know your real name."

"I don't think I was that different, Suzuki-san." Yuuri laughed nervously.

Seriously, he wasn't that different with or without his glasses – or if he slicked his hair or not. Of course, he knew Phichit would beg to differ and say that he's being a Sinnamon Roll instead of Cinnamon Roll. He doesn't get the difference, but he wasn't going to say that to Phichit because there was no way he'd sit through a long explanation. Besides, why would anyone compare him to a pastry roll? Why?

"Trust me son, you look different, especially during those cross-dressing days." Suzuki-san stroke his beard thoughtfully with a chuckle. "Yukina wouldn't stop talking about you after she visited your club. I thought she had a girlfriend on the side and was cheating on me until I saw your pictures. It's too bad that you quit. Then again, maybe it's good that you quit because I wouldn't have to be jealous of you."

"I just don't think it'd be good if I continued." Yuuri answered with a timid smile and a sweat drop. Really, how does one respond to that kind of statement without making things awkward?

Suzuki-san hummed in understanding, and cleared his throat, "Oh yes, that reminds me. Do you still race? I remembered that you mentioned participating in street racing when you were a teenager."

Yuuri looked at the older man in alarm before he glanced around the area, trying to see who heard that statement. It seemed all other skaters were busy conversing with one another or with other sponsors. He nervously sighed in relief and looked back at Suzuki-san, who looked thoroughly confused by his behavior.

"Please, please, please… don't mention it out loud." He pleaded with his hands clasped in a prayer manner. He then leaned forward and whispered conspiringly, "I know you sponsored cars for me since my racing days – I still don't know how you found out the first time – but no one here knows about that part of my past. I don't plan on letting know either. It was bad enough that they knew about my hosting days. They've been trying to make me cross-dress, you know."

Suzuki-san tried and failed to contain his laughter at the last remark. After a few seconds, he replied just as conspiringly in above whisper, "I hope that you still do. I need my number one test driver for our sport cars lineup. It certainly surprised me when my wife told me she saw you at Club Orchid. This is after my jealous fits, by the way. I thought we were paying you well so you wouldn't have to take another job."

"You did. But I somehow got roped into the club, and next thing I knew, I became one of the hosts. It wasn't that horrible so I stayed." Yuuri shrugged helplessly. "Well, that was until those theme days."

Suzuki-san laughed again in response, sounding like he remembered those days when Yuuri was reluctant to come into the club. "In any case, contact me when you have some free time, yeah? I have some jobs for you, and since you're of age, legally might I add, I'll even give you one of your choosing. I can't believe I hired you when you weren't of legal age, and we didn't get caught. Ah, good times."

"Yuuri~"

He immediately looked alarm when Victor suddenly called his name, and within seconds, the Russian skater draped around his shoulders. He nervously gulped while he pondered how much of their conversation has Victor heard. Does he know? How much did he hear? What should he do?

"Who is this, and what are we talking about? Are you doing something illegal? Do I need to contact my lawyer?"

Well, someone had been hanging out with Phichit, that was for sure.

"I'm sure you remember Suzuki-san, one of my sponsors." Yuuri supplied with an anxious smile, and that was all he was going to say.

There was no way would he mentioned that Suzuki-san and his wife were his clients when he was a host, or the fact that the two had hired him as a test driver for Suzuki sport cars before he was of legal driving age. In his defense, he is a good driver… granted, he liked speed but he never had accidents (bumping into a trash can or three when he parked doesn't count).

Overall, no one needed to know this information.

"So, Yuuri –"

"The answer is still no." He replied in a deadpanned tone. He already what his fiancé wanted to ask, so he gave an unamused look at Victor's puppy dog eyes, which he was immune to those eyes considering he had years of experience during his hosting days.

"Mila bought a new dress –" Victor started.

"Good for her, but the answer is still no."

"Ah, come on, Yuuri-kun. You should try it for old times' sake."

"You too, Suzuki-san? I thought you were on my side."

"Well, I wouldn't deny that you looked good, and it hasbeen a while since I've seen you." Suzuki-san smirked while he swirled his flute of champagne.

A mildly annoyed twitch appeared on Yuuri's forehead as he untangled himself from Victor's hug, and stared at the two men for a good minute like he was contemplating about Suzuki-san's remark. In the end, he uttered, "You will never catch me alive," and promptly ran away.

Thirtieth time is a charm, after all.


	3. Chapter 3

Note: This is unedited.

There are a lot of brand name drops in this chapter.

* * *

Yuuri resisted the urge to roll his eyes when he noticed Phichit, and Yurio lounging in the living room of his and Victor's apartment. He had forgotten that Victor had invited them over to celebrate the end of skating season – he had a feeling the older man just wanted a reason to have a party because they certainly didn't have one at the banquet the night before. Then again, he doubted anyone was up for partying since he had a feeling everyone had one too many drinks – even those who are minors because who doesn't sneak in a drink or three when no one was looking.

He let out a huff as he watched Yurio, Victor, and Phichit hunched over with a controller in hands and their eyes fixated on Victor's large television screen. They were playing Mario Kart, and from the looks of it, Phichit was in the lead, followed closely by Yurio. Victor… was in 9th place after his choice of character (Yoshi) drifted off the ledge.

"You suck, old man." Yurio snickered as he threw a red shell towards Phichit's Toad, and crossed the finish line.

"Dude! I was in the lead!" Phichit cried dramatically.

"Now you're not. Hah! I win! In your face!"

"Victor, you suck at this game." Yuuri remarked in a deadpanned tone. "If you don't know how to drift, it's better if you don't do it."

The said person let out a dramatic yet scandalous gasp and looked at him to say, "Yuuri, racing is all about drifting."

"If you're not good it, it's as good as crashing." He answered with a shrug. He then sat down on the couch behind his fiancé, and grabbed the controller. "It's suicide if you tried to do that in real life, especially during a race. Now then, let a real pro show you how it's done."

A competitive smirk graced his lips when he heard Phichit's sharp intake and grumble, "If you're playing Yuuri, I don't want to be a part of it."

"Why, scare of a little competition, Phichit?" Yuuri taunted as he selected his character – Tanuki Mario (because Tanuki is cute) – and scrolled through vehicle customizations.

He heard a strangled noise from his right, and turned to smirk at his best friend, who looked at him with narrowed eyes and looked offended. He doesn't know if it was because of his remark or something else, but the younger male looked ready for the challenge.

"You're a pro at Mario Kart. I don't even know how you have time to be a pro at this game, given our training schedule and other stuff." Phichit retorted with a huff, but he resigned himself to another round.

"Just how good are you at this game, Katsudon?" Yurio interjected into the conversation, reminding them of his presence.

"Unfortunately, Yuuri here placed first in every race." Phichit grumbled at the unfairness of the situation while he selected his character – Baby Mario this time. "I tried following how he does it, but it doesn't work. I always end up crashing into the wall or the guardrails."

"You're lucky that it's just Mario Kart." Yuuri responded in an amused tone as he accepted his choices for the vehicle customizations. "If it were a real race, you'll be in the hospital. Besides, you just need follow the road and turn tightly. Now, watch me as I make you eat dust."

He heard a low whistle from his fiancé, and a comment of, "Wow, Yuuri. You sound so sexy when you talk smack to your opponents."

Yurio let out a gagging noise, and shouted, "I don't want to hear it, old man!"

Needless to say, Yuuri was a front runner with a huge lead while Phichit and Yurio tried and failed to catch up to him. There were bombs, a blue shell, and a lot of red shells but Yuuri won in the end. It was an easy feat since he took tight corners and knew the routes like the back of his hands so he took shortcuts when he could.

"Like I said, if this was a real race… you'll end up in a hospital with the way you're driving."

* * *

Two weeks later, Yuuri failed to understand why Victor and Yurio decided to drag him back to Yutopia – his family's inn – simply to host a mid-autumn party. Granted, he chalked it up to one of Victor's whimsical whims, and his parents loved the sudden business boomed that came with famous Russian figure skaters staying at their inn. However, that also meant he had more work to do to help them – and it doesn't help that Victor, of all people, had him running around like a headless chicken (not that headless chickens could run… could they?) for various things.

Like, Magnum Grey Goose or a Himalayan edition of Stoli Elit.

Why would they carry those kinds of vodka? Yutopia is a Japanese inn – therefore, they have sake (from Juyondai to Michisakari) and maybe some vodka (the non-expensive kind), if his father felt like stocking on those, but certainly not expensive vodka. Let's not forget the fact that Victor gave him a nervous look like he wouldn't know what a Magnum Grey Goose or a Himalayan edition of Stoli Elit are. Of course, he would – he worked a high-end host club which meant he had more knowledge about alcohol, its brands, and its background information… not that he could bring it up in casual conversations.

He huffed exasperatedly as he put down a bottle of drip-pressed Nanbu Bijin on the table, and headed back to his room. He wasn't going to join Victor and Minako-sensei's drinking party, and listen to Yurio's grumbling about irresponsible adults. Usually, he would partake in their shenanigans, but he had a call from a certain someone about a race and it had been years (not really, but details) since he took part in one.

Yes, he – Yuuri Katsuki, the silver medalist of Barcelona Grand Prix Final – used to do illegal street racing. Not that his parents or anyone else knew, and the only reason his older sister found out was because he wasn't that quiet upon his return during his teenage years.

His illegal street racing changed into something legal when Suzuki-san and his wife found him, and asked him to do test driving for their new cars. It took him a while to agree since he had his hosting schedules to consider, but he ultimately agreed. His racing ground used to be on mountain passes with other racers around the area, but it moved to a race track when Suzuki-san hired him. One thing led to another, and he does test driving to big-named car manufacturers and they bestowed him a car whenever the car he test-droved ended up popular. Of course, he had to turn down the gift since he didn't have a need for owning multiple vehicles or a large garage to store them. Hence, he replaced his old (not that they were old since it had only been a year) vehicle with his new one, and the money he received tremendously helped with his skating expenses.

On top of that, he recently got a new-yet-to-be-released-car from an Italian car manufacture to test drive and review. He doesn't know how their Chairman and CEO knew about him, but he decided it wasn't worth the headache trying to decipher it. If anything, he would make a wild guess and say that Suzuki-san probably had a hand in it. It wasn't the first time a foreign car manufacture's Chairman and CEO knew about him and his test driving job. There weren't many people who knew about that detail, after all.

'Perhaps, it had to do with my involvement with previous test drives?' He pondered while he changed his clothes.

Another thing is that Yuuri doesn't like wearing contacts – he knew he looked good because Mari had said just as much since she said he looked like one of the idols she liked, and he wasn't going to ask for clarifications because he doesn't want or need to know. Then, there is the fact that he had to poke his eyes to put on contacts, and he doesn't like poking his eyes.

"Yet, here I am, wearing contacts because it's a bother driving with my glasses." Yuuri grumbled with a sigh as he took off his glasses in exchange for contacts.

Once he finished, he grabbed a set of keys from his nightstand and headed out the door. He still hasn't decided what to tell Victor or Yurio, and he certainly wasn't going to take them with him. Besides, his new car could only fit two people – well, they could certainly try fitting in three people if he wanted to tango with the law, but he doesn't want a ticket. Granted, he still raced on mountain passes whenever he got a chance – not that he does it often these days due to his hectic practice schedules and he wanted to keep this a secret from everyone – so he would still get a hefty fine if he got caught.

'Maybe I could sneak out the backdoor?'

"You have a race?"

Yuuri jumped out of his skin when he heard his older sister's voice. He had no idea how she knew based on his casual attire, but he supposed the fact he wore contacts gave it away.

"I know it's been a while, but yes." Yuuri nodded with a slight smile. He then looked around the premise before his voice dropped to a whisper, "A certain F brand sent me their latest model for a first drive review."

"You mean that expensive red sports car parked in the back? The Ferrari?" Mari asked with an eyebrow raised expectantly. "I was wondering who that belonged to, but I half-guessed it was yours since you do test drive for car companies and they gift you with a car or two afterwards. Besides, it's not like Victor would bring his car with him for a visit, and I doubt he has a Ferrari that isn't on the market yet."

"Yeah, it's my newest car. Doesn't it look cool?" Yuuri replied in an excited tone and his eyes sparkled in amazement. "It has 800 horsepower, and a dozen cylinders. Not only that, it can go from 0 to 100 kilometers in about 3 seconds, and 0 to 200 kilometers in about 8 seconds. On top of that, it's also the first Ferrari to introduce electric power steering, so I'm excited about trying that out."

Mari just stared at him for a moment, trying to decipher and comprehend what he said. In the end, she just uttered, "...That's cool, bro. Only I don't understand what you said."

He gave a sheepish grin, knowing that not everyone understood cars like he does – but that's only because he worked with cars since his teenage years.

"So, how are you going to sneak past those two Russians? I don't think I need to remind you that one of them is your fiancé." She asked in an amused tone with an eyebrow raised.

"I was hoping to slip through the back door." Yuuri answered with a shrug. He then ran a hand through his hair and huffed a sigh as if the very thought tired him, "It's not like I can take them with me on a downhill race. They're going to have a heart attack at the speed I'll be going and the way I drive. I don't want to be accused of sending two famous skaters to an emergency room for cardiac arrest and whatnot. That, and you know street racing is illegal."

"Then, why do you do it? And don't forget that you're a famous skater too."

"Because it's fun, duh." Yuuri rolled his eyes uncharacteristically. He took out his cellphone to look at the clock, and a small yelp escaped from his mouth. "I'm going to be late!"

"You could just cross-dress and walk out of here. No one will know." Mari smirked at her panicking brother, who shot an annoyed look at her direction. "I'm just saying, bro. You could be my sister if I didn't know that you're my brother underneath all the makeup and wig."

"Nee-san, you're evil." Yuuri sent an aggravated look and uttered various complaints under his breath.

He stalked over to the living room while he ignored his sister's chortles behind him. He really disliked that she kept bringing up his cross-dressing days whenever she got a chance, especially now that everyone knew about it. His seniors at the host club taught him well… a little too well that he could look like a girl (if he wanted to) when he wore the wig, dress, and applied right amount of makeup.

"Yuuri? Where are you going?" Victor asked in a curious tone with his head tilted.

"Katsudon, why are you dressed like me?" Yurio asked with the look that clearly said 'why-are-you-copying-MY-punk-looks?'. "And I can't believe you have three earrings on each side. That looks so cool!"

"I have a race. I'll be back late tonight." Yuuri replied in a hurried tone and walked out before the two could question him.

"A race? What race? YUURI!"

He snickered at the disbelieved cries as he slipped into his new car and ignited its engines. It had been a few months since his last race since he couldn't attend these as effortlessly as before due to his skating competitions and practices. More so now that his 'home rink' was in Saint Petersburg, and he wasn't going to race on one of its mountain passes when he doesn't know the route or the racers there well.

He looked at the rearview mirror and saw Victor's gawking expression at his red Ferrari 812 Superfast. Yeah, he couldn't believe it when the car manufacturer sent him this car so he could test drive and give a review. He had already done the test drive – it passed superbly – and now he might as well do the review of its specs while he raced.

Killing two birds with one stone, and what not. Not that he was going to kill any birds tonight.

He was going to make his opponents eat his dust.


	4. Chapter 4

Note: There are some Initial D references.

* * *

Phichit liked to believe that he was the sane one from the bunch. The bunch being the Russian Yuri, Japanese Yuuri, and Victor. It was strange… he – the hamster-loving, king of selfies and social media – was the normal one. Granted, his skating level wasn't on par with them (because everyone in the skating community knew that information) despite the gold medal he earned from that one time – Cup of China. But he digressed.

It wasn't that they were crazy or anything like that, but anyone who knew Victor would say that the older man was definitely eccentric and that was labeling it mildly. Then there was Russian Yuri – whom he decided to call Yurio because that's cute and easier than saying Russian Yuri all the time, so bravo for Mari for coming up with the nickname. The teenager was like a small angry kitten – albeit loud and hissy – but it was cute how Yurio decided to go to Japan with Yuuri and Victor like a chaperon. Of course, he couldn't talk about the two without talking about his best friend and former roommate – Yuuri Katsuki.

Phichit thought he knew his best friend. Like, really knew him – the two were roommates during their college days and rink mates until Yuuri graduated and moved back to Japan. They shared everything. Then he found out about Yuuri's hosting days (he had to give himself a pat on the back for his internet skills), his Mario Kart ability (he could still taste his umpteenth defeat in his mouth), and now he somehow managed to sneak into this expensive red sports car wherein his best friend was the driver (mad props for his ninja skills). When did this Cinnamon Roll (who was secretly a Sinnamon Roll) get a driver's license and how did he not know about this?

"A Ferrari, Yuuri? Boy, are you hiding something from me, your best friend? Are you secretly a prince and we didn't know it?" Phichit couldn't help but ask while he held up his cellphone to record the conversation.

He planned to record the conversation and anything else they were going to do, because fans needed to know about this side of Yuuri. Eros Yuuri left fans in nosebleed and pining (gosh, there were a lot of pining and squealing), so he could only imagine their reaction to a Racer Yuuri.

"PHICHIT!?"

That was the only warning he received before he heard loud noises of tires shrieking against the pavement, indicating that Yuuri had slammed on the brakes, and his body tossed towards to the dashboard and then against the headrest like a ragdoll. Now, he knew how his clothes felt like in a washing machine, not that he wanted to know how it felt in the first place. It took him to regain his bearings from the dizzying stop, and the two sat in silence while he inwardly noted that Yuuri was looking at him in flabbergasted manner.

'I guess I shouldn't have surprised him.' Phichit thought idly as he rubbed the back of his head. 'Then again, how did he not know I was here in the passenger seat when it's the only seat available?'

"How did you get here?" Yuuri questioned after he calmed down from the surprise appearance of his best friend, and resumed driving. "And put on your seat belt."

"Well, I heard it from Chris, who heard it from Georgi, who heard it from Mila, who heard it from Yurio about this mid-Autumn party. I can't believe that you didn't invite me, Yuuri. I feel so left out!" Phichit responded in a mock-betrayed tone while he attempted to put on his seat with one hand. His camera focused on him while he talked but he shifted its attention to the person in the driver seat. "Well, I knew it was just Victor's way of trying to spend time with you. But since Yurio decided to include himself – because why not? – I decided to come and crash the party so you wouldn't be left out. Then I find out that you're leaving them out to go for a race. Really, Yuuri? Since when do you race?"

Yuuri didn't flick a glance towards his direction when he answered, "Since I was 16 – way before I got my driver's license… and after my dad taught me how to drive."

"Oh my god, Yuuri, you're so rebellious. What would your fans say?" Phichit rebutted with a failed mixture of Southern and New York accent that made them chuckle. He looked at the passing scenery – not that he could with the speed Yuuri drove – and finally asked, "So where are we going?"

Yuuri let out a deep resigned sigh, sounding as if he gave up on an idea, and replied with a, "I have a race tonight with Team Emperor at Mitsuse Mountain Pass. It's about 48 kilometers with a lot of turns."

"A race, Yuuri? A RACE?" Phichit asked incredulously in disbelieve. "That's so dangerous! Is this even legal? Do I need to get in touch with my lawyer to finalize my will?"

"That's why I told you wear your seat belt. I wasn't going to take anyone but myself, and I had half the mind to drop you off. Only I remembered that your Japanese isn't that fluent yet, and I don't want to have the conscious of leaving you stranded in a foreign land without any money in the middle of the night. You can check this off from your bucket list, so feel free to thank me later."

Phichit sputtered incoherently at the statement in shock that those words came out from Yuuri of all people. His innocent best friend, who turned out to be not-so-innocent after all.

* * *

Phichit wanted to scream until he couldn't anymore… only he had already done that in the past five minutes and lost his voice. He couldn't believe that he agreed to this… this dangerous driving. In fact, he doesn't know how Yuuri could drive like this with such skills – the transition from one gear shift to another, and stepping on accelerator and the clutch pedal interchangeably was as smooth as the Japanese's step sequence. His best friend was like a pro, and he would daresay that if Yuuri wasn't a professional figure skater, the older male could be a professional race car driver.

He opened his mouth in silent scream when he heard tires squealing loudly as they drifted and he saw the guardrails inches away from the corner of his eyes. There were so many instances that he felt like they were going to crash, but didn't. He could have sworn that he saw his youthful life flashed by in front of his eyes. Suffice to say, he wouldn't get any footage of this race since he was busy holding onto his life and his phone had dropped to the floor when Yuuri drift-turned the first corner.

The only noise he heard throughout the past ten minutes were his manly (yes, manly, because it wasn't like a dying whale at all) screams and tires squealing across the pavements as they drifted. Phichit tightened his grip on the hand bar as firmly as he could (as if his grip wasn't firm enough already) and held on for life (like he hadn't been doing it since the race started) when Yuuri accelerated again. They were already going past 120 kilometers, just how fast does Yuuri intended to go on this narrow mountain pass?

"How can you see in the dark at this speed?" Phichit croaked out when the scenery flashed by before his eyes.

"Memorized the road and all shortcuts it entailed." Yuuri responded while he looked at his rearview mirror for a second. He swore under his breath when he saw the headlights of his opponent, and slammed on his brake as he drifted around the last hairpin curve before he crossed the finish line at the straightaway.

Phichit never felt so glad to step out of the car despite his wobbly legs and disorientated vision. He wasn't going to partake in this, no matter how much Yuuri paid him. Once was more than enough. Granted, his best friend could drive like a professional and they didn't crash or anything of sort, but there were so many close calls.

"As expected of a member from Project D." Yuuri's opponent chuckled as he approached the two.

"Well, I am a reserved member. The others are more skilled than me." Yuuri answered humbly with a smile. "After all these years, Team Emperor is still a force to be reckon with."

Phichit leaned against the side of Yuuri's red car and tried to get his bearings back. He could hear excited chatters from the audience but he couldn't decipher what they said – one thing he noted was that some had their cellphones out, almost as if they recorded the race and shared it amongst themselves. He normally would have asked them to share it with him, but he felt nauseous from the speed and the turns.

He waited as Yuuri exchanged pleasantries with his opponent and some other people he didn't know. After some minutes, his best friend gestured him to return to the car – a wave to the audience suggested that they were finally returning. Phichit was glad that the ride back to Yutopia was peaceful – Yuuri obeyed the speed laws and didn't go over the posted speed limit. It was something he took for granted in the past, but he was so grateful for it now.

"Yuuri…? I think I'm going to throw up."

"Not in the car, Phichit!"

* * *

Later that night, Phichit took some medicine (courtesy of Mama Katsuki, bless her soul) and scrolled through his social media feeds to see if anyone had posted anything about the race. He felt like he needed to brag about his best friend's racing skills – not that he enjoyed it, but the world needed to know. Yuuri forbade him from posting about his hosting days, so Phichit felt compelled to post about the race.

He stopped when he saw a headline and blinked to make sure that he wasn't seeing things.

 **YUURI KATSUKI, JAPAN'S ACE IN THE FIGURE SKATING WORLD AND A MEMBER OF PROJECT D, COMPETES AGAINST TEAM EMPEROR'S SEIJI IWAKI IN A DOWNHILL RACE ON MITSUSE PASS**

[photo]

[video]

 _2067 Comments_

"Our Cinnamon Roll was truly a Sinnamon Roll, huh?" Phichit murmured to no one.

He clicked on the video to watch the race he unknowingly had participated. His breath hitched and stuck on his throat when he recalled so many close calls, especially when the tail of Yuuri's car brushed against the guardrails when they drifted.

Despite his heart stuck in his throat and the shivers he got from watching the race, he needed to know more - because apparently, his best friend was hiding things from him and he didn't like it. Yuuri had so much explaining to do in the morning, and he was going to make sure that he had enough leverage to make his best friend talk.


	5. Chapter 5

Yuuri muttered various grumbles under his breath as he stalked (yes, stalked) through the front doors and directed his glare towards his best friend. He had to forgo sleep to type his first drive review of the Ferrari 812 Superfast while it was still fresh in his mind, and finally finished and sent it to his Italian client at around 4 in the morning. When he was about to sleep, he remembered about a certain accident in his car that he couldn't leave overnight to stain. As such, he had to drive all the way to Tokyo to service his brand-new car because Phichit had vomited on his seat.

Yes, vomit.

It was gross and disgusting. He then spent that dreaded seven-hour drive in his supposed-brand-new-car-that-smelled-like-vomit, and to say he was not a happy-camper was an understatement of the century.

"Yuuri, where have you been? We didn't see you all day." His mother questioned with curiosity laced in her tone. "Your friends had been asking for you, and they said they couldn't get in touch with you."

"I went to Tokyo to get my car serviced. My phone died about five hours ago, and I forgot to bring my car charger." Yuuri replied politely to his mother. He then looked over to his shoulder to the banquet room where his best friend, his fiancé, and a certain angry kitten were to say, "Because a certain someone couldn't wait until I stopped my car and decided that vomiting in my brand-new car seat was a good idea," in an accusing tone.

"Sorry, Yuuri." Phichit replied sheepishly with an apologetic smile while he rubbed the back of his neck. "But it's not my fault that you drove so fast and didn't obey the speed-limit. I'm surprised you didn't get a ticket for that unlawful behavior. Do you have something-something going on with the police that you're not sharing?"

Yuuri uttered various words of his choice when his best friend deflected the fault back to him, and took a deep breath to calm himself. He then ran a hand through his hair and flicked his gaze towards the group with a mischievous smirk, "Of course not, Phichit. What do you take me for? I can't believe you would accuse your best friend like that. Speaking of which, your fans certainly enjoyed watching you scream at the top of your lungs, Phichit. There are already fanfics about how much of a joy you'll be in the bedroom," while he showed a certain page on his cellphone towards his hamster-loving friend.

"Yuuri! What have you done?" Phichit squeaked out as he patted his pockets to take out his cellphone. He immediately logged in to Yuuri's social media page and stared at the screen in aghast. He couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"Who are you and what have you done to my innocent Yuuri?" Victor all but shook the said person. "I miss my innocent Yuuri! Return him back to me, you alien! Change back, I say! Change back!"

"Oi, old man, stop being so dramatic! And Katsudon, don't tell me you posted something incriminating about this hamster here." Yurio raised an eyebrow as he fished for his cellphone. Wordlessly, the young Russian tapped away on his cellphone, and then sputtered, "You didn't. Oh my god, you did! This is so… I don't even know what to call this, but wow. I didn't know you have guts to do something like this. Katsudon, I'm seeing you in a new light."

"How could you do this to me, Yuuri? My life is over! Over, I say!" Phichit cried overdramatically.

Yuuri resisted and failed the urge to roll his eyes, and pointed out in his deadpanned tone, "You wanted to post about my driving so I did. It even had your reaction to it, so isn't that good? Killing two birds with one stone, and what have you."

"How is it good when I was screaming at the top of my lungs throughout the whole ride?"

"This is so dizzying." Victor rubbed his temple as he watched the mentioned video for only a couple of minutes. "Yuuri, I didn't know you're a professional racer. Why didn't you tell me? How could you not tell me?"

Yuuri watched amusedly when he saw an awed expression on the young Russian skater's face while hunched over the small screen of a cellphone. He had no idea what was going through Yurio's mind, but he could easily say those awed looks differently differed from Victor's dazed look and Phichit's aghast one. "This is so cool! Katsudon, teach me!"

"No, Yurio! You mustn't! It's dangerous!" Phichit cried out.

An amused laughter escaped from his mouth as he watched Phichit's attempts to stop Yurio from learning how to drive from him. His gaze then shifted to Victor, who looked lost (like his soul had escaped from his mouth) by all the commotions.

It wasn't like he was trying to hide this detail, but how does one bring up about his racing in a casual conversation. He couldn't just say, "Oh, and I participate in illegal street racing because it's fun," in a conversation without opening a variety of complex issues that involved lectures.

"Yuuri, you're evil." Phichit sobbed melodramatically over an open page on his cellphone.

 **PHICHIT CHULANONT'S REACTION TO YUURI KATSUKI'S DOWNHILL RACE ON MITSUSE PASS**

[video]

[Caution to headphone users: There are a lot of screaming. A lot of screaming.]

 **COMMENTS** **•** **1937**

Sorted By: Best

Phichit'sHamsterz 2 hours ago (edited)

OH MY GOD! I didn't know our Phichit could scream that loud. Give the boy a prize for his lungs.  
I mean, imagine how he would be like in a bedroom ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Hint, hint, nudge, nudge, wink, wink ⌒(≧▽° ). You know what I'm talking about.  
But dude! I came here for Phichit's reaction but Yuuri's driving skills, yo! IT WAS AMAZING! It was the BOMB!

* * *

Yuuri paused in his mid-action of buttoning his shirt when he heard his cellphone's melody. He knew that it wasn't anyone from the skating community because the only people who would call him were still in his family's hot springs. No, it was a ringtone he had not heard in months - it was familiar yet unfamiliar ringtone at the same time. A glance at the name on the screen made him want to ignore the call, but his curiosity won so he accepted the call.

Suffice to say, he regretted his action a couple of minutes later, and it would be rude to disconnect the call.

"Come on, Yuuri. I know you quit years ago, but we're buddies, aren't we?"

A twitch appeared on his expression while he stared at his phone, still silently contemplating if he should hang up the call but that would be rude. He couldn't help but curse the manners instilled in him, and continued to listen to the caller's plead half-heartedly and agonizingly.

"Our group can't do this without you. You're the essential guy in our group. The main one! The star! Our clients loved you! Well, I won't say anything about you stealing our clients, but you get what I mean, right buddy?"

"I'm a professional figure skater, Takao. And remember how I quit years ago?" Yuuri pointed out with a sigh as he ran a hand through his hair.

Yes, this Takao and the Takao his older sister constantly gushed about was the same. Mari doesn't know that the man she idolized was from the makeshift three-member band that Club Orchid (his host club) created to attract customers. Then again, the general public doesn't know that all three members were hosts and believed that they were idols from a popular entertainment agency. It also doesn't help that they released singles and albums consistently, and their music charted every time.

The things his host club did to be different from competitors. Seriously.

"Oh please, we all know that our boss didn't accept your resignation letter. Like, why would he when you're one of the best? Besides, you still help out during off-season for skating… except for last year and this year. You still need to explain why you were absent, but that's a story for another time." Takao responded dismissively as if it amused him that Yuuri thought this was an issue. "Anyway, you know you're on extended leave, so why don't you just accept this proposal and be done with it?"

Yuuri opened and closed his mouth repeatedly at the argument, feeling his energy drained from the rebuttal before he uttered, "But I have practice."

"That's the lamest excuse ever. I bet you were going to say, 'But I have homework' if you were still in school, weren't you? You used to do that to get out of our theme days. I remember that. Yeah, no, that excuse isn't going to work this time. I'll see you tomorrow at eight o'clock for the fitting, Yuuri. I can't wait to see you as Yuki. This year's theme day is going the best! I just know it! Bye Yuuri~"

"You can't just accept it for me! I didn't agree to this! What happened to my rights? Don't I have a say in this? Takao? Takao!" Yuuri cried out to his cellphone, but gave a resigned sigh when he realized that Takao had hung up on him and he was shouting to thin air.

Great.

Just great.

"Yuuri, what's with the shouting? Is everything okay?" Mari questioned with concern laced in her tone when she walked in. A pocky stick hung from her mouth (she was trying to curve her smoking habits for the past couple of weeks) while her hands were filled with freshly washed towels, which she placed in its rightful cabinet in the changing room.

"Nee-san… my life is over. I think I should get in touch with my lawyer and start making my will. I'll leave my car to you."

Mari looked at him with an unimpressed look on her face in response, and said, "Yuuri, I don't know what's going on with you, but you don't have a personal lawyer. Maybe you should start with that."

He hadn't stepped into Club Orchid for months (although in his defense, he gave his resignation letter to his boss whom he just learned denied his resignation), and his first day back after a long time would begin with a theme day. He despised theme days. It wasn't that he needed the money now because he had sponsors, but he felt obliged to the club and everyone in it for helping his dream come true. It was for that very reason why he offered to step in every so often even after he left to become professional figure skater.

Now, he regretted offering his service to them and for giving them his new phone number.

Still, he despised theme days... especially a theme day consisting of cross-dressing.


	6. Chapter 6

Note: Contains some Final Fantasy and Mystic Messenger references.

* * *

Victor doesn't know what to make of this situation. In fact, he doesn't know what to make of Yuuri these days either… he could accept that Yuuri had worked at a host club. After all, figure skating was expensive and he knew that Yuuri didn't have sponsors early in his career to support those expenses. Like, really, he understood that and he appreciated the pictures Phichit shared with him. He could boast that he, now, had a collection of Yuuri in his host attires – some in formal, some in normal costumes, and a handful in cross-dressed costumes. In fact, this collection surpassed the one he had of Yuuri at the infamous Sochi banquet.

Still… when heard Yuuri was going to a race in a sports car, he felt his heart lodged in his throat and stayed there. Despite the anxiety that built within him, his mind betrayed him with the thought, "Wow, a race car driver Yuuri? That's so sexy!"

Yuuri dressed in a casual attire of a pair of black jeans, a white V-neck tee that showed off his collarbones, ear piercings (ear piercings!), and hair nonchalantly slicked back with some wax but some rebellious strands fell over his eyes. On top of that, Yuuri wasn't wearing his glasses so there was so much Eros whenever he looked over to Victor's direction.

If that wasn't the epitome of pure sexiness, Victor doesn't know what was. The wild, confident, and sexy side of Yuuri that he hadn't had a pleasure of meeting before? His thoughts definitely went south, and it doesn't help his case that he turned into an incoherent mess every time he thought about it.

Victor stifled his face with a pillow and groaned as he tried to control his thoughts. There were only so much Eros Yuuri he could handle in a day, and it didn't help that the Japanese skater wore similar attires as the day before today – except with a white dress shirt with top two buttons unbuttoned that revealed two silver chain necklaces, a pair of black slacks, a black fur jacket, and a pair of black boots. If he knew that Yuuri looked sinfully delightful in a black fur jacket, he would have stocked up on this item years ago.

He secretly believed that Yuuri was slowly killing him, and needless to say, it was working. Or perhaps, Yuuri was sending him a hidden message that he doesn't understand. Whatever it was, Victor needed to a cold shower… now.

"Yuuri, where are you going?" Victor turned his head when he heard Mari's question.

"Takao asked for my presence at the club." Yuuri answered while he adjusted his cuffs with one hand. "Seriously, I resigned years ago, only to find out that they still didn't accept my resignation."

Mari laughed at the remark, and pointed out, "Despite how much you complain about being a host, you like it," with a Pocky stick pointing at her younger brother.

"I don't know, Nee-san." Yuuri responded dubiously while he ran a hand through his hair again.

Victor mentally noted that his fiancé should stop doing that movement because he doesn't know if he could handle anymore Yuuri oozing with sex appeals.

"I mean, I learned a lot of things when I was there, and made a lot of connections with a lot of people. But I don't know if I can handle it on top of being a professional skater. You know Club Orchid isn't a normal host club."

"What do you mean, Yuuri?" Victor drawled curiously while he conveniently placed a nearby pillow on top of his lap. He chose to remain silent when the younger male raised a delicate brow at his action and gave a knowing smirk.

Yuuri cleared his throat and sent a seductive smirk at Victor's direction, "Club Orchid is a high-end host club that's different from other host clubs. It's the only host club that doesn't offer sexual favors to their clients. You'll know that from its webpage. No, instead the club had produced groups that rivaled current idol singers in the music industry and these groups released music that charted every time. There's also photobooks and whatnot, and they are especially popular when it consisted photos from theme days."

"Yuuri here still haven't told me which group he's in." Mari grumbled with a huff. "I mean, it's not like it's a big secret since we can find out from the internet if we knew where to look. But that's too work."

"It's easy if you knew where to look on the website. Still, you'll be surprise how makeup can transform someone, Nee-san."

"Trust me, bro. In case you've forgotten, I'm a girl, I know how much makeup can change a person. Besides, we all know that you as a cross-dressed Yuki definitely looks different. I wouldn't be surprised if someone had hit on you in the past." Mari retorted in a deadpanned tone.

"Someone had hit on you, Yuuri?" Victor asked in a bewildered tone.

Not that this surprised him at all. After all, look at Yuuri – look at Yuuri. His fiancé doesn't look innocent at all… no, it looked like Yurio's punk attire had influenced him or maybe it was the other way around?

Victor contemplated on the matter as he thoughtfully sipped on his green tea. Yuuri was a mystery these days, and he wanted to unravel this puzzle with precision and care. It was more thrilling this way… not that it wasn't thrilling already with what he already knew.

"Don't worry, Nee-san. I made sure to kick him in the groin like you taught me."

Victor promptly choked on his tea at that remark.

* * *

Later that night at around midnight…

Victor didn't realize how easy it would be to convince Mari to take him to Club Orchid. All he had to do was ask, but he had a feeling Mari had planned to go regardless. She had that mischievous glint in her eyes that he didn't want to question. Much to his amusement, Yurio had to stay behind for being too young (Mari's words, not his; and he heard an extensive amount of questionable curses that he didn't know from the young Russian's mouth. Kids these days...), and Phichit invited himself to come along when the latter heard the conversation.

He raised a questioning brow when he saw a device hanging around the Thai's neck, who simply grinned and raised the item to his eye level.

"For blackmail purpose." The hamster grinned as he revealed the expensive camera.

He had to admit that he hadn't been to any Japanese host clubs to know what it would be like. Sure, he spent the afternoon hunched over his tablet, trying to learn the etiquettes in a host club and how to interact with one. Hours upon hours research – although he spent more than half of that time ogling at Yuuri's pictures – resulted in nothing fruitful, which admittedly was his fault because he spent those times staring at Yuuri's pictures (he didn't regret it at all).

Victor stared at the infrastructure before him as the neon sign of 'Club Orchid' stared back at him with its flower motif. The billboard near Phichit, who was fiddling with his camera, displayed pictures of five males dressed in traditional black and white suit with their names written on the bottom.

Yuuri's picture – with wild hair and smoky eye makeup – ranked first. He doesn't know when he took out his cellphone, but when Victor realized what he was doing, he already had twenty pictures of Yuuri's picture in his collection.

"Well, here it is." Mari declared with a snicker.

He followed down the narrow stairway and to an inconspicuous lone door. The three stared at one another, silently debating who should open the door, but Mari rolled her eyes at their antics to open it herself. The first thing he noticed was the bright light, followed by luxurious chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, and expensive decors that furnished the place. It felt like being in a billionaire mansion – not that he knew what that felt like, but he had seen enough movies to know.

"I wonder where Yuuri is." Victor wondered out loud.

"No one uses their real name here, Vicchan." Mari commented absentmindedly while she looked around the premise, trying to find someone. "But if you're looking for him, he's right there talking to someone."

Victor turned to the direction the older Katsuki sibling direction, and promptly choked on air.

He wasn't positive if the person he was seeing was indeed Yuuri or entirely someone else. The Yuuri pointed out to him was wearing a black leather dress with a black trench coat and long black hair wig. The first thing he noticed was the light makeup and smoky eyes that captivated his attention. The second thing that struck him was if this was Yuuri, and not an actual girl. It seemed like an actual girl.

"Sorry, but we're already closed for today."

Victor turned to the owner of the voice, which turned out to be a man's, but the person that stood before him wore a rose-colored dress and had long brunette hair in a high ponytail. He blinked confusingly while he opened and closed his mouth repeatedly like a goldfish.

"Ah, no. We're not here for –" Phichit stammered nervously while he snapped his pictures.

"Mari? Victor? Phichit? What are you doing here?"

Victor immediately turned to the direction of Yuuri's voice, and openly gaped when he realized that the person Mari pointed out (one wearing black leather dress and long black hair wig) was indeed Yuuri. If he hadn't known that Yuuri was biologically a male, he would've thought otherwise.

"Victor, you're inner fanboy is showing. Not to mention, you're drooling." Phichit snickered and snapped his pictures a few times for good measure.

He visibly gulped and hurriedly wiped his mouth just as his fiancé slowly walked towards his direction in high heels. The only thought that ran through his mind was, 'Legs. So much legs. Yuuri have amazing legs.'

"Victor was curious." Mari replied with a grin as she swung an arm around her brother. She stared at him momentarily as if she was assessing his current attire, and then groped his chest, "You went all out, huh? These definitely look real."

"Nee-san! This is sexual harassment!" Yuuri cried out as he moved away from her, and crossed his arms protectively. He ignored her guffaws and cleared his throat to explain, "But as you can see, we did Final Fantasy theme, full-on cross-dressing style."

"There are so many questions I want to ask you, Yuuri, but I don't know where to begin." Victor remarked as he shook his head, trying to clear his mental breakdown.

"It's better if you don't think too much, Victor, and just roll with it." Yuuri gave a tentative smile that made him looked more innocent.

Victor had to resist the urge to take out his cellphone and take myriads of pictures… which reminded him, he needed to buy another storage card. He had been meaning to do it yesterday, but there were so many sinfully delightful distractions that involved Yuuri.

"So, what's this Orchid Messenger that I've been seeing on this site, Yuuri?" Phichit interjected as he waved his cellphone that displayed the topic of his inquiry.

"It's a female-oriented visual novel mobile game my boss produced. Its characters are based on all 14 hosts here. The user can experience a love story through an interactive messaging app – like receiving phone calls and texts that depend on the relationship with other characters. It's widely popular among our female clients since its release a couple of years ago." Yuuri explained as he brushed some strands of hair from his wig behind his ear. "We've released opening theme songs, character songs, and group songs for it. Surprisingly, the released songs have charted highly on music charts."

"Huh, how come we don't know anything about it?" Mari murmured under her breath with an eyebrow raised.

"It's not something I'd like to advertise. Our female clients love it. In any case, I feel ridiculous talking to you in this attire, and I'm sure Phichit already have gotten more than enough pictures for blackmail and whatnot. I'm going to go change, if you don't mind." Yuuri didn't wait for their response and left in a hurried manner.

Victor immediately turned to the Thai skater, and whispered loudly, "You have to give me the pictures! I'll even pay you, if you want!" while he looked back to Yuuri's retreating figure.

He wasn't sure what his fiancé would do if the younger male found out about his collection. He didn't want to take a risk to find out, but he needed these pictures for his private viewing purposes... for science.

Yes, science. Definitely for science.


	7. Chapter 7

Note: Contains more Mystic Messenger references.

* * *

Yuri remembered the first time he confronted Katsudon in that bathroom at Sochi Grand Prix Final. He doesn't know what the older man was crying about, but the Japanese man was in such a sobbing mess that it was disgusting to look at. On top of that, it didn't sit well with him that their names were the same – especially when he was clearly the better Yuri.

He vocalized his thoughts, and told Katsudon to take a hike because there could only be one Yuri. That would be him, Yuri Plisetsky, and not Yuuri Katsuki.

Then, there was Sochi Banquet – an event he utterly disliked reminiscing. It wasn't because he pitied Katsudon (whom he later learned regretted everything that happened there), but due to his defeated dance-off battles. He doesn't want to remember it at all. Yet, there were millions (not really, but seemed like it) of pictures floating around in other skaters' cellphone that contained the dance-offs, pole-dancing, and what have you from the infamous Banquet.

"Stupid Victor and Hamster. How could they leave me behind?" Yuri grumbled while he scrolled through his social media page. His scowl was prominent on his expression, and continued mockingly, "I'm too young, they say. Hah! I'm more mature than they are."

He huffed angrily while he pondered his decision to come along with Victor and Katsudon to Japan. It was a spontaneous decision to crash on the two's vacation. Frankly, Yuri doesn't care if those two were on a vacation or whatever. Those two were so sappy, it made him sick and the world doesn't need to see that if he could help it.

Yes, he was doing everyone a favor, and they should be grateful to him.

As much as he doesn't want to admit it, this trip made him see Katsudon in a new light. The ear piercings (three in each ear; three!), the sports car (he wanted one himself but he needed to know how to drive first), and the confidence Katsudon exuded differed from his usual anxious one. The Japanese man was so cool especially from what he saw regarding the street racing, and it made him want to laugh that Victor doesn't want to accept it.

He was going to get Katsudon to teach him, one way or another… whether Victor liked it or not.

Yuri had spent the entire night stalking the internet, watching various past videos of Katsudon's races that other people uploaded and living vicariously through it. Suffice to say, the way Katsudon drove impressed him especially with the controlled sudden turns and drifts that paralleled professional racers – not that he would admit it out loud. He wasn't going to inflate Katsudon's ego if he could help it.

"No one would've thought that Katsudon was a host amid this." Yuri murmured to thin air while he clicked on another video.

He blinked confusingly when he came across the name 'Orchid Messenger' from the video's comments, and opened another tab to search it. His search led him to a certain Club Orchid website, and scrolled through the nonsense that was host profiles. He didn't want to know who they were nor did he cared. He quickly flicked through the next page about the services the club provided when his forefinger brushed passed a long rectangular button, and it led him to another webpage.

"What the hell did I just installed?"

Yuri stared at the name 'Orchid Messenger' for the longest time and openly gaped at the fact that a host club had a visual novel mobile game catering to female audiences. A visual novel mobile game with the hosts as its main characters. A visual novel mobile game with Katsudon as one of the main character.

He murmured various colorful words while he waited.

When the download finished, he stared at a 2D picture of one of the hosts on the app icon and debated if he should delete or open it. He knew the target audience was female, but he was somewhat curious about what it entailed. He doesn't understand why Katsudon was a popular host member – and he couldn't go to the club itself to find out either.

'It's purely for research.' He told himself when he clicked on the app.

He blinked in surprise when he heard music and stared at the screen as it showed someone's hand with an orchid. Was that an envelope symbol in the middle of the orchid? The animation and the music reminded him of an anime opening theme. Not that he watched any. On top of that, the graphics reminded him of shoujo manga… not that he read any. Really.

"I just got your messages.

Every morning I wake up to the same sweet sound,  
Picking up my cellphone that's been ringing.

Wondering what's new? What have I missed?  
I was offline,  
Anyway, I will end up hearing your story.

How are you doing today?  
Same questions every single day.  
Please know that I'm not good at asking you."

He decided to simply enjoy the song instead of trying to decipher the words and its meanings. He had to admit the opening theme was catchy… and he was pleasantly surprised that it was in English instead of Japanese. He supposed it catered to international audiences as well.

He clicked the 'home' button on his cellphone so he could search the identity of the singer. His search led him back to Club Orchid's website and the page he downloaded the app from. He dismissed the information about the app, beginner's tips, and the identities of the hosts in the game – it wasn't like he was going to play this for a long term. After he scrolled through a bunch of useless materials, he finally stopped at a small line that contained the information he needed.

"What the hell!? Katsudon sang this?" Yuri stared at the small screen of his cellphone in disbelief.

He exited the webpage and went back to the app to listen to the song once more. For judging purposes. He concluded that it didn't sound like Katsudon at all - then again, he never heard Katsudon sing so he couldn't pass that judgment with confidence.

Yuri mentally made a note to download the song later… for future references and further research.

He waited for the app to finish downloading extra data and stared at the screen momentarily when it showed the anime version of 14 hosts (yes, he counted). He looked at each one with careful eye, trying to decipher which one was Katsudon (so he knew who to avoid), but it was hard since he doesn't know how different Katsudon looked in this game.

If the older man looked like as he did earlier that night before he left to Club Orchid, then Yuri might be able to pinpoint the exact character. Otherwise, it would be difficult to figure who was who… and he wasn't going to bother referring to the host profiles. It was too much work and he wasn't going to waste his time when he could be doing something else… like playing this game, for example.

With a huff, he laid down on his bed, trying to find a comfortable position before he started with the game. He wanted to know the hype surrounding this game… for his curiosity surrounding Katsudon, and nothing else.

Seriously.

* * *

"Yura, you have bags under your eyes. Did you not sleep well last night?" Victor asked concernedly.

Yuri directed his half-hearted glare towards the older man and flipped him off while he muttered incoherently under his breath. He wasn't in the mood to deal with Victor's extra-ness when he barely slept last night.

Besides, he sure as hell wasn't going to admit to anyone in the room that he spent the whole night glued to his cellphone… or that 2D Katsudon was the character he was trying to woo.

He didn't even realize it was Katsudon's character until he decided to refer to the game's guide with much reluctance after playing for four hours.

He needed to get a good ending, dammit.

That damn game was addicting, and he doesn't regret installing it

It was all for the sake of research. Nothing more, really.


	8. Chapter 8

Yuuri expected this to happen when he uploaded the infamous Mitsuse Pass video on his social media the other day. He updated it very rarely (his last update was two years ago - he checked), but the entire skating community exploded when they found out that he was the driver. He couldn't fault them for such reactions because he, too, would be shocked if he put himself in their shoes. He understood, really. After all, no one predicted that he would be a racer or that he could drive like a professional racer. Then again... no one knew (how could he have mentioned it in a casual conversation?) about it so he expected such reactions.

'I think I broke the internet.' He inwardly sweat dropped while he scrolled through his social media page and various comments from his fans.

His gaze paused over a comment from his fan club president (he didn't know he had one) that said, "I knew Yuuri-chan isn't as innocent as his looks made him out to be! I KNEW IT!"

"If they only knew." He snickered under his breath while his thumb hovered above the 'comment' button, but decided against it. "I'll pretend I didn't see that so I won't cause more havoc than it is currently."

As suave as he believed he was during his hosting hours (and believe him, he could be smooth if he wanted to), he doesn't know what to post on his social media page because he couldn't upload his photos he had in his gallery without incriminating himself. He had a lot of photos from his hosting and racing days that he doesn't feel comfortable sharing yet. He doesn't feel the world was ready for his unceasing host persona revealed in the photos – heck, he knew that Victor was having a hard time in his presence. It amused him, especially with Victor's obviously inconspicuous way of hiding his problem with a pillow or trying to resolve it by taking cold showers.

Besides, his devious side wanted to post them just to see the havoc it'll cause. Yes, Yuuri knew that he wasn't that innocent as his friends and family believed to be – after all, he needed to adapt to some of his clients' eccentric behavior. It was one of the reasons why he knew how to deal with Victor when he first met the older man.

He stared at his phone and blinked repeatedly, trying to make sure that he wasn't seeing things.

It just seemed so surreal, but he supposed he knew this would happen. It was only a matter of when. Yet, he wasn't mentally prepared for it to be this soon.

A certain best friend with a handle of 'phichit+chu' posted his picture without his permission (not that he asked for Phichit's permission when he posted that infamous Mitsuse Pass video). He wouldn't say anything if it was a normal picture, but it wasn't a normal picture. In fact, he could have let it slide if it was a picture in his host attire despite his desire to withhold it from the world. He felt the world wasn't ready for that much Eros - not that he would know if they were ready or not.

No, it was one of his cross-dressing pictures – his latest cross-dressing picture to be exact… one he had done just days prior for that theme day.

 **phichit+chu**

[photo]

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phichit+chu: Our Yuuri looks like a real girl!

#yuu-katsuki #cross-dressing #finalfantasy #cluborchid #sinnamonyuuri #yuuricouldfooleveryone #host!yuuri

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Yuuri doesn't know what to make of this… other than the fact that he idly noted that the camera angle captured his good side (he had his narcissistic moments since his work required attention towards appearances). If he didn't realize that it was him underneath the makeup, wig, and dress, he would've guessed it was a real girl underneath the costume. Yes, he was that good at cross-dressing, much to his dismay and his fellow hosts' amusement. One of his fellow hosts once asked him to cross-dress to pretend to be his girlfriend for the day. Suffice to say, he decked the laughing man, but it didn't stop his colleagues from asking such questions every so often. Another story for another time.

He opened a new tab for a new post, silently contemplating if he should open the floodgate and post other pictures from his hosting days. Phichit had already damaged whatever image he had, and he wasn't going to try to salvage it when others' reactions amused him and the evidence was out there for everyone to see. There were so many pictures and episodes to share. Then again, maybe he should sort through nearly 5000 pictures saved in his gallery (which amounted to about 7 years' worth of pictures and videos) before he dumped them online unceremoniously.

"So, Yuuri. I'm guessing you saw my work. What do you think?" He nearly jumped in startled when he heard his best friend, and quickly composed himself to direct a glare towards the Thai skater, who just grinned in response.

The younger male took a seat across from him, and looked proud of himself for the havoc he caused on the internet.

"I hate you, Phichit. I'm denouncing you as my best friend from now on." Yuuri retorted with a mocking scowl without gazing away from his cellphone.

He was having difficulty choosing what to post – on one hand, he wanted to post one of the photos from his racing days (one where he wore punk-like attires with earrings and chains), but he also wanted to post a video file of him singing the opening song for Orchid Messenger to promote the game. It was only because he liked the song a little too much; after all, he sang in English when he barely understood the language then. English! Then, there was also one of the more popular songs his group (consisting of him, Takao, and another member) sang together. It charted quite highly on music charts upon the singles' release, and his clients loved it.

He had so many choices to choose from, especially if he wanted his first 'post' to have an impact. It needed to defeat Phichit's.

"Aww, Yuuri. You don't mean that. You know you love me."

He was positive Victor had taught his best friend that kicked puppy-dog eyes look because Phichit didn't have that skill before. He had half the mind to call out on it, but decided against it when he remembered that it didn't matter. The damage wasn't that bad to begin with since he contemplated about posting about his past just minutes ago. He supposed he doesn't need to care if the world was ready because Phichit did a favor for him and started on the fun ahead of him.

How dare his best friend start the party without him, the main star?

"Phichit, I can't believe you actually went ahead and posted it. I thought you were kidding."

Yuuri looked up from his cellphone when he heard Victor's voice. He noticed that the older man was wearing one of the inn's robe, suggesting that Victor had just finished taking a shower or had soaked in the hot springs. He speculated it was the former since his fiancé had been taking them quite often these days, and he had to readjust the water temperature when it was his turn. Still, he wasn't going to embarrass Victor by voicing it out loud even though he wanted to and almost blurt it out.

'Self-control. self-control!' He mentally chided and bit the bottom of his lips from saying anything.

"This is a revenge for that driving video." Phichit responded with a careless shrug. An exasperated sigh escaped from his mouth as he plopped down on the table's surface, and grumbled, "Besides, this boosted Yuuri's image for some reasons. The internet – most of them are Yuuri's fans – seemed to love it and it's all they talk about. I don't get your fans, Yuuri."

"By the way, where is Yura? Don't tell me he's still sleeping. It's mid-afternoon now." Victor interjected with a thoughtful frown.

"When I checked him this morning, he was still sleeping." Yuuri answered without tearing his gaze away from his cellphone while his finger hovered above a video clip. "I think he stayed up all night gaming on his cellphone."

He was going to add more – like his discovery when he checked up on the young Russian in the morning – when he heard a loud frustrated groan from the mentioned male. He blinked in confusion and looked over to the direction of the voice to see Yurio stalking over to their direction with a scowl.

"I hate you, Katsudon."

Yuuri blinked in startled at the sudden declaration, and paused in his mid-edit of a video on his cellphone. It amused him that the young Russian looked so disheveled and tired that the glare directed at him was ineffective. Even though he had a feeling he knew the reason behind such statement, he wanted to hear the reason from Yurio himself.

"Why do you hate me, Yurio? Did I do something for you to feel that way?"

He merely smirked amusedly when the young Russian didn't give him a proper response. Instead, all he heard was a jumble of incoherent words in Russian that he didn't bother to translate and an improper hand gesture that looked like an attempt to flip him off. He gave up trying to decipher Yurio's sudden behavior, and chalked it up to a teenage angst (not that he understood what that entailed) or an entire night spent gaming (this, he understood because he had done it himself).

"So, Yuuri. Why aren't you wearing your glasses?" Victor decided that his lack of eye-wear was more important than Yurio's tired state.

"As much as I utterly disliked wearing contacts, Nee-san said I looked good in them. Don't you think so, Victor?" He answered with a shrug, and grinned at his fiancé's flabbergasted look. He knew he was being narcissistic with his remark, but it was true. "Besides, I've seen how you had been eyeing at me for the past couple of days without my glasses. You've had your fair share of teasing me for the past year, so it's my turn. There must be give and take in a relationship, and all that. You understand, right?"

Yuuri simple chuckled at Victor's sputtering response to his statement, and dismissed his best friend's horrified expression. He doesn't understand their dramatic reactions – he could be playful, and seductive (or full of Eros as others coined it) if he wanted to.

"Victor was right. What happened to our sweet innocent Yuuri?" Phichit sobbed dramatically while he wiped an invisible tear from the corner of his eyes. "I didn't raise you to be so rebellious."

He huffed at the remark, silently pondering if his current behavior greatly contrasted with how he portrayed himself to them over the years. He knew with certainty that his host persona (the playful and seductive one) was different – he had to be, if he wanted to attracted clients and keep them. It was one of the reasons why he consistently remained number one at the Club. Nevertheless, it was still his persona – granted, he rarely showed it throughout his professional figure skating career because he didn't want anyone to know about him being a host.

Not that he cared about it now that it was public, thanks to Phichit.

"Like I said last time, you didn't raise me at all."

"Details, Yuuri. Details." The Thai skater retorted with a wave of his hand to dismiss the matter. "So, Yurio. Tell us what you've been doing all night for you to be this tired."

"None of your damn business, Hamster."

Yuuri hummed in understanding while his thumb hovered above the 'post' button momentarily. After much deliberation, he decided to post all three (because why not? Fans deserved it) and decided to start with a picture from his racing days (him with a Bugatti Chiron). As much as he liked the car and understood that they didn't let him keep one, he had a lot to say regarding its pricing because he could buy a lot and then some with $3 million.

"I can't believe you're addicted to Orchid Messenger, Yurio. Don't deny it, I saw you had that app opened when I went to check in on you this morning."

"Mind your own business, Katsudon!"

He simply chuckled at the young Russian's vehement denials, and ghosted his finger over the 'post' after he typed out his message. "I won't judge you, Yurio. Well, not much anyways – although it's curious why you decided to go for my route. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about it since I played the game during its beta stage."

"Does our Yura have a crush on my Yuuri? I don't mind sharing if it's you." Victor smirked knowingly with an elbow plopped on the table.

"Aww, you do. How cute." Phichit cooed with a teasing smile.

"Why the hell would I have a crush on Katsudon, you sicko! And wipe that damn smirk off your face! You guys make me want to puke."

Yuuri glanced over to the glaring young Russian, and decided to rescue the poor boy with a, "Victor, you're my coach, right?" even though he wanted to tease Yurio some more.

Well, he supposed he could save it for later… when the angry kitten calmed down and doesn't look ready to claw anyone's eyes out. He needed his vision for a variety of things, thank you very much.

"Last time I checked, yes. Why, are you thinking of replacing me, Yuuri? Why would you do that?" His fiancé frowned at the implication of his inquiry.

"Well, you might need to handle this somehow because I think I broke the internet with my posts."

Yuuri chuckled as he showed his cellphone, showing his social media page with posts of his pictures and videos from his host and racing days. He watched entertainingly when an indigent gasp escaped from Victor's mouth, and looked at the small screen in fascinated horror at the growing comments.

"Yuuri, how could you give me such work? What am I going to tell the reporters? What should I tell them? I don't know what to tell them. Yuuri… you can't leave me hanging like that."

"You'll think of something. You are my coach, after all." He answered with a wave of his hand. He turned his attention to the youngest member around the table with a mischievous grin plastered on his face, "Don't worry. Even though you're young, I don't mind if you like me that way."

"Shut up, Katsudon! I don't like you that way! Get it through your thick head!" Yurio all but screeched and stomped off back to his room.

"Thank goodness, he doesn't. At least I don't have to worry about being called a pedophile or a cradle robber. I was just kidding about him liking me, you know."


End file.
